Panic’s handheld console Playdate sells 20,000 units in 20 minutes

Panic put their new handheld console, the Playdate, on sale yesterday (July 29) and sold over 20,000 units in the first twenty minutes.

Those lucky enough to get one of the first batch of 20,000 will have their console shipped before the end of the year. Everyone else will have to wait for the second batch with an estimated shipping date of 2022 with “production adjusted based on demand”.

Panic has explained that the limited launch is due to the company’s small size.

Speaking to Techcrunch, a rep for Panic confirmed that their shipping estimator was accurate and that they had sold that first batch in under half an hour.

Demand for the Playdate is so high that Panic are already anticipating a 2023 bucket but “it’ll take a while to get there”.

Totally understood if you don’t order. But be warned there is a “2023” bucket we haven’t hit yet (it’ll take a while to get there).

— Playdate (@playdate) July 29, 2021

As with any launch, Panic was hit with technical problems with some people looking to buy the handheld from outside the US being kicked out of the queue (and into the ‘shipping in 2022 group’). The company are “investigating options” though.

⚠️ Our most sincere apologies to any international customers who had difficulty checking out this morning. Our international shipping provider’s plug-in fell over under heavy load (despite our many warnings). Many orders went through, but many didn’t. We’re investigating options.

— Playdate (@playdate) July 29, 2021

The Playdate is a handheld with a stripped-down interface, a high resolution, high contrast black and white screen and a novel crank on the side. Panic partnered with musical hardware company Teenage Engineering to build the device.

Games for Playdate will be released in Seasons, with the first expected to feature 24 titles. Two games will launch a week across its first 12 weeks, which will all be included in the price of the console.

In other news, in response to an antitrust lawsuit filed in April, Valve has defended why the company chooses to take a 30 per cent cut from all products sold on Steam.

The lawsuit was filed in April and claims that Valve takes an “extraordinarily high cut” from sales, further alleging that due to the 30 per cent cut, “competition, output, and innovation are suppressed, in ways that can never be fully redressed by damages alone.”